Jamie Moore: A5 crash victim 'a great athlete'

A teenager who died after a crash on the A5 in Omagh, County Tyrone, has been described as a "great athlete", by the principal of his old school.

Jamie Moore been named as one of the victims of the crash on Tuesday by Christos Gaitatzis, principal of Omagh High School.

Kamile Vaicikonyte, who was 17, was previously named as the other victim.

Both died at the scene on the Doogary Road at about 21:50 BST, police said.

In a statement, Mr Gaitatzis described Mr Moore, who was 19, as "a pleasant young man", who "always tried to help the pupils and staff around him".

"He showed genuine kindness to others and he engaged positively with many school events offering his time to give a helping hand to the school community and beyond," he said.

Mr Moore joined Omagh High School in 2016 and completed his GCSE's, leaving school in 2021.

Mr Gaitatzis said he was "a great athlete and he demonstrated his athletic skills very well in our sports days".

He was also described as a "good footballer" who "helped the school to win in the football pitch".

Mr Gaitatzis added that the school community was "devastated with the news".

"We want to extend our thoughts and prayers to Jamie's family for their loss such a kind young man.

"He will be remembered fondly for his kindness and pleasant manner."

The other victim, Kamile Vaicikonyte, was a pupil at St Ciaran's College in County Tyrone.

"Kamile was a lovely girl, she had a lovely smile," her principal, Paul Lavery told BBC News NI. "There's a big cloud over the school today."

The headmaster added that on the day before the fatal crash, Kamile had taken part in demonstration at her school to remember people who have died on the A5.

St Ciaran's College in Ballygawley was supporting a campaign calling for safety upgrades to the route.

"It's just awful to think that 24 hours later she has lost her life on the same road," Mr Lavery said, adding that had "heightened the tragedy".

Stormont's Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd has offered his "heartfelt condolences" to the families.

He is to meet police to discuss "serious road safety concerns" on the A5.

The principal also offered his "heartfelt sympathy" to Kamile's family and friends, saying people connected to the Ballygawley school were "really distraught about what has happened".

"Of course we're all extremely shocked and continue to be shocked and saddened," Mr Lavery said.

"There's a big cloud over the school today, but I would like to thank the community for all their support, and everyone who has tried to help us in this very, very difficult time."

He described Kamile as a quiet pupil but added that "once the teachers got to know her she was very bubbly and just loved having fun and particularly enjoyed having fun with her friends".

"She was a very important part of our school community, someone who had talked about her hopes and dreams for the future, which included going to university.

"I know she had done a placement in one of our local primary schools, so she may have been considering doing teaching in the future as well."

The principal also thanked the Education Authority's critical team "who have come out very quickly and helped to support our pupils".

Mr Lavery said his school has been "very much impacted by road traffic accidents" and the latest deaths had brought back memories for many people in the area.

"You can't get to St Ciaran's really without using the A5," he explained, adding it was a source of ongoing concern for pupils and their parents.

The infrastructure minister said he hoped police would meet him "in the coming days".

He said he does not want to face more delays "which could, in turn, lead to more tragedies".

Mr O'Dowd said: "If I don't get the decision right, then we're going to face more delays so my determination is to get this decision right" he said.

Speaking at the NI Policing Board meeting on Thursday, Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said officers would be meeting Mr O'Dowd in June to "discuss all proactive measures possible" regarding the A5.

"We will very much meet the infrastructure minister and we will do anything and everything within our power to make sure, whether it's speed reduction or increased visibility, that we do our part in preventing these tragedies from occurring again," he said.

Mr Boutcher said a pressing issue in tackling the high number of road deaths was that they are working with fewer officers.

He said that 21 officers had been cut from the road safety team and they needed to be "creative" and work collaboratively with partner agencies in order to effectively tackle this.

"Nothing is off the table to address this epidemic on our roads," Jon Boutcher said.

More than 50 people have been killed on the road since 2006 with upgrade work hit by a series of delays and legal challenges.

The demonstration at St Ciaran's College in Ballygawley also called for work to start on the long-awaited upgrade of the road.

As part of Monday's event, the school released a video, external where pupils stood in the shape of a cross.

The A5 is a 58-mile (94km) road linking Londonderry with the main road to Dublin at Aughnacloy on the Irish border.

Despite upgrade plans first being announced about 17 years ago, work on the A5 has not yet started.

In February the Irish government confirmed it would contribute €600m for the upgrade of the A5, as part of investment for cross-border projects.

The following month, Mr O'Dowd met campaigners who want the A5 road upgrade to be prioritised by Stormont.

At that time, the minister said he was determined to deliver the project but said he could not provide a timescale for making a decision on when work could begin.

Speaking to BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme on Thursday, Niall McKenna from the A5 Enough Is Enough campaign group said there can be no more delays in upgrading the road.

"It's been 17 years since the scheme was first approved in July 2007 and nearly 55 people have lost their lives in that time," he said.

"There have been already four deaths this month and we are only at the start of May - the figures on this road is frightening."

Mr McKenna, who has met John O'Dowd and department officials, said they were acutely aware of the issues surrounding the A5.